Spokane made a strong statement in Game 2, outshooting Tri-City 40-15 and beating them handily, 6-3. The Chiefs were up 5-1 entering the third period and the Americans got a last minute power play goal to make the score look closer than it was. Tyler Johnson scored a power play goal for Spokane and fellow Lightning prospect Carter Ashton had two third period assists for TC. Senators prospect Jared Cowen had four assists for the Chiefs. The game had 89 minutes in penalties. Game 3 is Tuesday in Kennewick. Games 4 and 5 will also be at the home of the Americans.

Mullinâ€™s assist gave him 60 points for the year, good enough to finish seventh in the league scoring race. That race was won by Mullinâ€™s future Miami-Ohio teammate Blake Coleman (undrafted) of Indiana, who had 92 points â€“ 17 more than anyone else in the league. No.4 Fargoâ€™s recent stretch of sub-par play means they wonâ€™t get a first round bye in the playoffs. Theyâ€™re set to meet Lincoln for a best of three series starting Friday in Fargo. All games will be played in North Dakota. Considering the Force had a better road record than at home, that might not be a good thing.

Gatineau will go home for games three and four of the series in a 0-2 hole. Drummondville scored twice in the first period Saturday and cruised to a 3-0 win. Game 3 â€“ a must-win game for the Olympiques â€“ is Tuesday.

Second-seeded Montreal is a Game 1 overtime goal away from being down 0-2 to eighth-seeded Lewiston in their QMJHL quarterfinals series. Olivier Dame-Malka (undrafted) scored four times Saturday to lead the MAINEiacs to a 6-2 win. Lightning prospect Charles Landry has points in consecutive games. Game 3 is Tuesday in Maine.

Geoffrey Schemitsch (pictured) scored his first two points of the playoffs en route to First Star honors in Game 2 as the Attack took a 2-0 lead on Plymouth in their conference semifinal series. Michael Zador, the reigning CHL Goaltender of the Week, was pulled after the second period of Game 1 in favor of Scott Stajcer. Stajcer played all of Game 2 and Zador was relegated to the bleachers as a healthy scratch. Game 3 is Monday in Ontario.

Tri-Cityâ€™s 5â€™8â€ goaltender Drew Owsley (undrafted) stopped 34 of 35 shots to steal Game 1 for the Americans and give his team home ice advantage in the series. If there was good news for Spokane, leading scorer Tyler Johnson was back on the ice after he was injured in Game 3 vs. Chilliwack. Neither Johnson nor fellow Lightning prospect Carter Ashton registered a point in Game 1. Game 2 is Sunday in Spokane.

Saskatoon fell to 2-4 in their last six games and now find themselves with a tough uphill climb down 0-2 to fourth-seeded Kootenay going to the Iceâ€™s home barn for the next two games. On Saturday, Kings super-prospect Brayden Schenn scored with just over a minute left in regulation for Saskatoon to tie the game, but the Iceâ€™s Joe Antilla (undrafted) potted the overtime winner with 1:28 left in the extra session. Game 3 is Tuesday.

Mullin scored shorthanded and into an empty net to give him 22 goals on the year. He also added two assists and was plus-4. Not a bad night. Fargo remains in fourth in the conference, but are two points out of second. They have two home games left next weekend before the playoffs start.

Saginaw scored the tie-breaking goal just past the half-way point of the third period and held on for a Game 5 win over Guelph. Panik was penalized for a check to the head at the 20:00 mark of the third period. Two other Guelph players were also penalized after the final horn. No Spirit players were called for an infraction at that time. Game 6 is Sunday in Guelph.

Zador, who was once a first round pick of London, got the start in the pivotal Game 5 for Owen Sound and didnâ€™t disappoint, stopping 13 of 13 shots before leaving the game midway through the third period. It was his first career playoff win. The Attackâ€™s usual No.1 keeper, Jordan Binnington, didnâ€™t dress for the game. Heâ€™s been shaky this series and was pulled in favor of Zador in Game 4. There are no reports of an injury to Zador, so itâ€™s likely he was pulled in the third period with the game out of hand to prevent an injury.

"I felt like it was just an every day game, I was comfortable," Zador told the Owen Sound Sun Times after the game. "Our team played great in front of me so I'm really happy how it turned out. I'm just going to take it day-to-day and keep playing the way I am right now."

The Knights only had 14 shots in Game 5 despite having four power plays. Game 6 is Sunday in London.

Johnson missed his second full game with a head injury. His Chiefs teammates were able to overcome playing without their leading scorer and eliminated the Bruins in five games. This may have been the last time the Bruins represented Chilliwack as reports state a move to Victoria is expected. Spokane will face Lightning prospect Carter Ashton and Tri-City in the next round starting next Saturday. Hopefully the week off allows enough time for Johnson to recover.

After seeing their 2-0 series lead disappear at the home of eighth-seeded Prince Albert, Saskatoon made a statement in Game 5, destroying the Raiders 8-0. The Blades scored six times in the second period to break a 0-0 tie. Game 6 is Sunday in Prince Albert.

Mullin has just one assist in his last three games, two of those being losses. Fargo has clinched a playoff spot despite a mediocre 13-11-3 home record. They are in fourth in the West, but are two points out of second place.

Guelph had a chance to go up 3-1 at home as underdogs in their series and held a 2-0 lead going into the second period before giving up four goals in the middle stanza. The pivotal Game 5 is Saturday in Michigan.

Zador entered the game down 5-1 at 8:02 of the third period and was perfect for the remainder of the game. The Knights pounded Top seeded Owen Sound is struggling with London as the series goes back to Owen Sound for Game 5 Saturday.

Johnson missed the game due to an injury sustained when he was elbowed by Chilliwackâ€™s Tyler Stahl in the second period of Game 3. Stahl was suspended for Thursdayâ€™s game. No timetable has been given for Johnsonâ€™s return. Spokane was able to overcome not playing with the WHLâ€™s leading goal scorer and second leading point producer in Game 4, but unless Johnson returns, their shot at the conference and/or league titles is in jeopardy. The Bruins have their own distractions now since there are heavy rumors the team is moving to Victoria, B.C. after being sold. The Chiefs can close it out Saturday at home in Game 5.

The WHLâ€™s top team, Saskatoon, now finds themselves tied with upstart Prince Albert 2-2 in their conference quarterfinals series. The Raiders outshot the Blades by a wide margin (41-30) for the second straight game. Game 5 is Saturday in Saskatoon.

[b][i]QMJHL[/b][/i]
[b]QMJHL First Round [/b]
[b] No.5 Gatineau Olympiques 4 @ No. 12 Rimouski Oceanic 3 (OT)[/b]
[i]Gatineau leads best of seven series 3-1[/i]
[i]D [b][url=/adam-janosik]Adam Janosik[/url][/b], GAT: 0-0-0, E, 0 PIM, 3 SOG, 1 Hit[/i]
Season Totals: 60 GP, 7-25-32, +17, 37 PIM
Playoff Totals: 4 GP, 1-2-3, -2, 4 PIM
Jean-Gabriel Pageau (2011) scored his third goal of the series at 5:41 of overtime to lift Gatineau to a Game 4 win over Rimouski. Game 5 is Friday in Gatineau.
[b] No.2 Montreal Juniors 4 @ No.15 Halifax Mooseheads 2 [/b]
[i]Montreal wins best of seven series 4-0[/i]
[i]D [b][url=/charles-landry]Charles Landry[/url][/b], MTL: 0-0-0, +1, 4 PIM (roughing, checking from behind), 3 SOG, 0 Hits[/i]
Season Totals: 57 GP, 11-29-40, +26, 30 PIM
Playoff Totals: 4 GP, 1-0-1, +6, 8 PIM
Montreal made quick work of the Mooseheads, sweeping them in four games. Landry finished the series plus-6. The top four teams in the Q all swept their opponents, as did No.11 seed Victoriaville, who swept the Titan 4-0. In this new format, all teams are re-seeded in the second round, so the Juniors will play the second-lowest seed to come out; likely No.8 Lewiston, who is up 3-1 on Moncton.
[i][b]WHL[/b][/i]
[b]Western Conference Quarterfinals[/b]
[b] No.4 Tri-City Americans 5 @ No.5 Vancouver Giants 1[/b]
[i] Tri-City wins best of seven series 4-0[/i]
[i]RW [b][url=/carter-ashton]Carter Ashton[/url][/b], TC: 1-1-2, +1, 0 PIM[/i]
Season Totals: 62 GP, 33-38-71, -6, 106 PIM
Playoff Totals: 4 GP, 2-1-3, +2, 2 PIM
Carter Ashton scored his second game winning goal of the series as the Americans made a clean sweep of the Giants in their conference quarterfinal series. Vancouver, needing a win to stay alive, only registered 18 shots in the game as they went out with a whimper. Ashtonâ€™s goal came in the late first period on the power play.
[b]Western Conference Quarterfinals [/b]
[b] No.2 Kelowna Rockets 4 @ No.7 Prince George Cougars 2 [/b]
[i] Kelowna wins best of seven series 4-0[/i]
[i]RW [b][url=/brett-connolly]Brett Connolly[/url][/b], PG: Did not play (injured - shoulder) [/i]
Season Totals: 59 GP, 46-27-73, -5, 26 PIM
Playoff Totals: 1 GP, 0-0-0, E, 0 PIM
The Cougars outshot the Rockets for the second straight game, but without their captain, leading scorer, and star player Brett Connolly, they couldnâ€™t put the puck in the net enough and now are done for the year. Connolly missed all but half of a period in the series due to a shoulder separation. If heâ€™s healthy, he can join the Norfolk Admirals of the AHL since Prince George is finished, but thatâ€™s a big â€œifâ€ and Lightning GM Steve Yzerman may not want him rushing back into play to risk further injury. Despite missing a couple weeks with a knee injury, it was a successful year for Connolly, who flirted with 50 goals and played for Team Canada at the World Junior Tournament. Yzerman told the Tampa Tribune recently Connolly must get stronger if he is to play at the NHL level. Next year Connolly will either be back in Prince George or in Tampa with the Lightning as he cannot begin a season in the AHL until 2012, after he turns 20.
[b]Western Conference Quarterfinals[/b]
[b]No.7 Chilliwack Bruins 4 @ No.2 Spokane Chiefs 3 (OT) [/b]
[i] Spokane leads best of seven series 2-1[/i]
[i]C [b][url=/tyler-johnson]Tyler Johnson[/url][/b], SPO: 1-1-2, +1, 0 PIM [/i]
Season Totals: 71 GP, 53-62-115, +27, 48 PIM
Playoff Totals: 3 GP, 2-2-4, +1, 0 PIM
Johnson had a goal and an assist, but was knocked out of the game in the second period after being elbowed by Chilliwackâ€™s Tyler Stahl (pictured â€“ Spokesman Review photo). Spokane had just scored to go up 3-0 when the incident occurred. Johnson, who had an assist on the goal being scored when the hit took place, is listed as questionable for Game 4. Stahl was given a major penalty and game misconduct and now faces a possible suspension. The Bruins scored the gameâ€™s next four goals. Kevin Sundher (Sabres) had both the game tying and overtime winning goals for the Bruins. Game 4 is Thursday in Spokane. The series is following a 2-3-1-1-1 format.
[b]Eastern Conference Quarterfinals[/b]
[b] No.1 Saskatoon Blades 3 @ No.8 Prince Albert Raiders 6[/b]
[i] Saskatoon leads best of seven series 2-1[/i]
[i]D [b][url=/teigan-zahn]Teigan Zahn[/url][/b], SAS: 0-0-0, -2, 0 PIM[/i]
Season Totals: 72 GP, 3-20-23, +39, 133 PIM
Playoff Totals: 3 GP, 0-2-2 +1, 2 PIM
The Raiders came out flying, outshooting the Blades 22-6 in the first period, but needed a three goal third period to beat the WHLâ€™s best team 6-3. Zahn was scoreless after his First Star award and two assists in Game 2. Brandon Herrod (undrafted) had two goals and was First Star for the Raiders. Game 4 is Thursday in Prince Albert.